Gummi Bears and Underwear

It all started when snack time rolled around. Most of the kids went to get one out of their backpacks; the ones who weren't prepared received a measly five gummi bears, the snack cupboard being nearly empty. One boy was scarfing his gummi bears when the rest of the class began to tattle: "Miss Djerf, he already had a snack! I saw him eating a snack bar from his backpack!" He vehemently denied it, angrily shouting back accusations and insults to his accusers.

As they continued to yell back and forth, I found the lone snack bar wrapper in the trash can beside his desk and put it on his desk, confronting him: "Hey, you're not telling us the truth! When you lie to us like that, it makes us not trust you." We were far beyond rational conversation, however. By this point, his anger was so out of control that I sent him to cool down in the hall for a few minutes.

As he left the room, he muttered under his breath, "You hate me! No one at this school likes me. I hate this school!" When he reached the door, he turned to me and growled, "You can just wear your underwear on your head!"

The rest of the class was mortified. "Did you hear what he just said to you?!" As for me? I was trying VERY HARD not to burst out laughing.

What do you do to someone who tells you to wear your underwear on your head? Our handbook is silent on this one!

In the end, he stayed in at recess, and we had a long talk regarding Proverbs 28:13 "He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them finds mercy." After several minutes, he finally broke and admitted he'd lied. "I just wanted two snacks today instead of one. I wanted two snacks really bad!"

If nothing else, it was a lesson in thinking like a first grader. Five gummi bears matter. Underwear is an insulting thing. And just like with grown ups, admitting you're wrong is not an easy thing to do -- but it's the only way to mercy.